Investments
Four More Reasons the Bulls Are Smiling
Last month, I wrote about some bullish events taking place in Three More Bullish Signals The Bears Don’t Want To See, and it was a very popular blog. Well, today, I’ll take it one more step and list four new reasons the bulls will continue to smile. We think the Fed is likely done hiking …
Ryan Detrick
May 17, 2023
We Now See a Path to Lower Inflation
April’s CPI inflation data came in at expectations. Headline inflation rose 0.4% and is now up 4.9% over the past year. That is well below the peak rate of 9.1% last June. The big picture is inflation has already pulled back in a big way. That is primarily because of lower energy prices, and a …
Sonu Varghese
May 16, 2023
7 Questions About Regional Banks
There are so many questions that we get from our advisors and clients about the regional banking crisis, in addition to the debt ceiling (which Ryan covered in another blog). Here’re some answers to some of the common questions. What is happening with regional banks? The crisis erupted with Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) in early …
Sonu Varghese
May 11, 2023
Sam Stovall Joins Facts vs. Feelings
Sonu and I had the honor and privilege to be joined by Sam Stovall, the Chief Investment Strategist at CFRA on the Facts vs. Feelings podcast last week. I’ve been a fan of Sam for more than two decades and it was so much fun to talk markets, his career, and tips for investors and …
Ryan Detrick
May 10, 2023
11 Things To Know About The Debt Ceiling
“I don’t make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.” – Will Rogers One of the top questions we’ve received lately has to do with the impending debt ceiling drama and what it could all mean. Here are some common questions and answers regarding this excitement out of Washington. What is the …
Ryan Detrick
May 9, 2023
Data Suggests the Economy Is Doing Just Fine
If you were worried about a sudden stop for the economy on the back of a banking crisis, you may want to know that the April employment data suggests that the economy is doing just fine, perhaps more than fine. Of course, this is not to say that the banking crisis is not a problem. …
Sonu Varghese
May 5, 2023
May the Fed be With You
Happy Star Wars Day, or if you’re fan like I am (or have a birthday today like I do), May the 4th be with you! Of course, the title is a play on all this, but I find it apt since the Federal Reserve (Fed) looms so large as far as investors are concerned. The …
Sonu Varghese
May 4, 2023
The Last Hike?
By the time most of you read this, there’s a good chance the Fed hiked rates by 25 basis points to 5.25%, the 10th consecutive hike from a low of 0.5% during the depths of COVID. We have no clue if this is their last hike, but odds are we are getting quite close. Let’s …
Ryan Detrick
May 3, 2023
Why This Stock Market is Like The Michael Jordan Chicago Bulls
“I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” -Michael Jordan One of the big knocks we keep hearing about …
Ryan Detrick
May 2, 2023
Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Sell In May
Buckle up, as one of the most well-known investment axioms is nearly here, the ‘Sell in May and Go Away’ period, otherwise known as Sell in May. This gets a ton of play in the media, as these six months are indeed the worst six-month combo out of all scenarios, while stocks also did quite …
Ryan Detrick
April 28, 2023
Don’t Be Fooled by the Headline GDP Number
The Bureau of Economic Analysis just reported that the U.S. economy expanded by only 1.1% in the first quarter. By the way, that’s an annualized rate – the actual quarter-over-quarter increase is just under 0.3%. This was well below expectations for 1.9% growth. More fodder for recession calls? Short answer, no. GDP can basically be …
Sonu Varghese
April 27, 2023
Consumers Are Doing OK, but Don’t Feel Good About the Future
The Conference Board just released its consumer confidence index for April, and the data wasn’t great. The index fell from 104 to 101.3, and it is well off last December’s 109 level. Not to mention the fact that it’s more than 30 percentage points below where the index was in February 2020 (just before the …
Sonu Varghese
April 26, 2023